Ahmed Mohamed Abul-Magd, a Muslim lawyer and human rights activist, is one who did not like the constant Christian bashing in the publications domain, and decided to take action. Last June, Abul-Magd filed an official complaint to the prosecutor-general against Sheikh Mohamed Hassaan who had issued a set of five tapes—reviewed and approved by al-Azhar—attempting an interpretation of the Christian faith. In the process, Sheikh Hassaan derided and insulted Christianity.

Abul-Magd told Watani that his interest in the issue of religious fanaticism began as part of his interest and involvement in human rights and freedoms. He said he believes the current fanaticism rampant on the Egyptian street is fed by the hundreds of books, tapes and CD’s available on the market which supposedly explain Christian and Islamic beliefs to the public.
Sheikh Hassaan’s tapes allege misquotation of the Bible and brands Christians are heretics, Abul-Magd said. Such allegations are totally unacceptable and add fuel to an already explosive situation. As a devout Muslim, he stressed, I do not accept abuse of any religion. “I try to promote acceptance of ‘the other’ regardless of differences in beliefs. Unfortunately the complaint was met with disapproval—sometimes even stinging criticism—from some people. So we need the combined efforts of human rights organisations and civil NGOs to work on changing the current state of apprehension among Christians and Muslims,” Abul-Magd said.